Hello folks!
First off, let me apologize for taking such a long hiatus. Sorry to my readers,
as I will try not to let it happen again!
Stage Three
Football Fever.
Its affected
me physically, by not allowing me to sleep.
I’ve been like a six year old on Christmas Eve with visions of crushing
hits, catches of pure beauty, and attempted anticipation of games that are more
suspenseful than Stephen King could ever envision.
So I’ve
compiled a sort of “wish list” if you will.
I imagined up a pigskin buffet of ten of the best games that I would
like to watch this season. I will say
this year is the most open that I have been able to remember for quite some
time. This year the speed of the PAC-12
and strength of the Big Ten have a chance to humble the mighty SEC. “Not so fast my friend!” I can hear Lee Corso
yell in my head like it is eleven on a Saturday morning, and my couch has the
most beautiful molding to my butt region.
I have some sort of fat snack with either a beer or a soda, and I have
entered my NCAA Football Nirvana. No
offense if you’re totally into Buddhism.
So without
further delay, here is the Griff’s Sports top ten games to watch this year…
#10 Auburn vs. Clemson
This first
of September matchup showcases the classic ACC vs. SEC matchup in the Georgia
Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. Clemson will
be without their star receiver, Sammy Watkins, who is suspended for the first
two games of the season. This game will
define who Auburn will be as a football team, as they are still recovering from
“Life After Cam.” I am interested to see
how Auburn’s defense will play against the Clemson offense without
Watkins. I think Clemson will have to be
able to run the ball with Andre Ellington and sling to the other talented
receivers they have besides Watkins.
#9 Michigan vs. Ohio State
Who doesn’t
like the arguably biggest rivalry in College Football? This 24th of November matchup will
be (as it always is) both team’s finale of the 2012 season. The Buckeyes have a very interesting last two
weeks of their season, as they are fighting for and against redemption between
Wisconsin and Michigan. This will be the
finale of Urban Meyer’s first campaign, and I think a lot of people will be surprised
with amount of success he will produce.
Ohio State is a very talented team this year, and I think they will be a
talk for contending for the National Championship in 2013 or 2014. I think at this point of the season a lot of
people will rescind Denard Robinson from the Heisman race, and I do not think
Michigan will be as successful as they were last season.
#8 Mississippi State vs. Alabama
Okay, so I
know Mississippi State is not on a lot of people’s radar. I think this team is going to be sneaky good
this year. They are overshadowed by
probably the most powerful division in any football conference in the country. With that being said, Alabama is going to be
a good football team, and Nick Saban is going to have them ready to play and
win. This match-up will be a good late
October football game, and both teams will probably be playing their best
football by this time barring the injury bug.
Alabama plays SEC East opponent Tennessee the week prior, while
Mississippi State plays the meager Middle Tennessee. I am not sure how much of a difference that
will make, but I figured it would be fun to throw in there. I will be really surprised if this game is as
one-sided as it was last year.
#7 Clemson vs. Florida State
This 22
September match-up in Tallahassee, formerly the Bowden Bowl, has flip-flopped
winners since 2008. Since 2009, the
winner has represented the Atlantic Division of the ACC in the ACC
Championship. Besides South Carolina,
Florida State will be the biggest test to Clemson’s criticized offensive
line. The star receiver, Sammy Watkins,
will be back for this late September match-up that will greatly impact both
team’s 2012 campaign.
#6 West Virginia vs. Texas
This 6
October match-up will forge a new rivalry in the Big 12. I believe this game will be a good “measuring
stick” for West Virginia’s quarterback, Gino Smith, as a Heisman candidate. This game will be the middle game of the
Longhorn’s toughest three game stretch of the 2012 season. The good news for Coach Mack Brown’s team is
that the game is in Austin. I think this
game will make a lot of folks take the Mountaineer seriously as a contender in
the Big 12, as they most definitely are, in their first season in the
conference.
#5 Ohio State vs. Wisconsin
This 17
November match-up in frigid Camp Randall will be the picture perfect Big 10
football game. It will be one cold,
physical, old-school smash mouth football game.
I would go as far as to say that this will be one of the top five most
physical football games played in the FBS this season. Wisconsin seeks revenge from an Ohio State
team that in the last moment snatched victory from the jaws of defeat in the
2011 season. If you are attending in
person, please don’t be that fanatic that isn’t wearing a shirt because its
going to be simply frigid.
#4 Georgia vs. South Carolina
This game is
usually the second game on the schedule for both teams, but this year the
contest has moved to 6 October this season.
This is bound to be the “slugfest” of the SEC East. The winner will most likely be the SEC East
Champion (so we think). Last year South
Carolina swept the East, but two losses to Western division opponents landed
the Bulldogs bus tickets to the Georgia Dome to play LSU for the SEC
Championship. This game has only been
decided by more than seven points once in the last five meetings. This game has always been a personal favorite
of mine for the last decade or so because it keeps you on the edge of your
seat. Columbia will be rocking for this
one.
#3 LSU vs. Arkansas
The “Battle
for the Golden Boot” will be played on the 23rd of November (a usual
Friday). This is a big, key game for the
battle of the SEC Western division. This
series has flip-flopped since 2008, and the Razorbacks have three of the last
five meetings. This year the Razorbacks
will be seeking some redemption, as LSU won big en route to the BCS National
Championship. This rivalry game has
gained a reputation recently of being an important game with major
implications.
#2 Oregon vs. Southern California
This game
will be played on possibly the most important weekend of College Football (see
#1). This ball game will be a great
showcase of PAC-12 speed. I believe this
will be a PAC-12 Championship preview, and the winner will probably get home
field advantage. To beat the Trojans,
Oregon will have to answer some questions before this match-up. Southern Cal has the talent to run the table
this year, and this game will be their main hurdle.
#1 Alabama vs. LSU
This 3rd
of November match-up is the Hector versus Achilles battle of the College
Football world. It is the Bayou Bengals
shot at revenge from the National Championship game that they have had a whole
year to think about getting shut-out in their own state. The winner is most likely going to win the
SEC. This battle of the giants is my
2012 Regular Season Game of the Year.
So there you
have my top ten watch list. Next week,
we will have Rhino and I’s pre-season All-American Team along with some picks
and some notes. As always, if you have
any questions or comments I would absolutely love to hear them. Tweet me @griffaldo or email me at JCGriffin13@yahoo.com
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